You always hear that you can’t fight City Hall. So many times, I have received emails from
citizens that include a comment along the lines of, “I know a decision has
already been made” or “I know I can’t change anything, but…”
I’m a big believer in the power of the people. The input from citizens matters. As we witness people across our country exerting
their first amendment rights to free expression, I’d like to share some small
wins resulting from citizen involvement that have happened here recently in
Cary. These wins may seem insignificant
in light of what we are seeing in the news right now, but I think they are big accomplishments
for the people who call Cary home. And,
both of these wins underscore the importance of citizen engagement.
1.
Dominion Energy Gas Line
A concerned citizen, Pam Tully, reached out to me a few
weeks back with alarm that nearly 8 miles of easement along the American
Tobacco Trail was being considered for the route of a new 13-mile gas pipeline. This route would require the removal of hundreds,
if not thousands, of trees along the trail and would forever change the
experience for people using the trail.
With the acknowledgement that the Town was not the decision-maker
for this easement agreement between Dominion Energy and NCDOT, she asked, “How
can this be happening? Is there anything
that we can do to stop it? Can we
influence the impact to the trail and the replanting of the trees removed?” Her email spurred the Town into action and
our staff reached out to Dominion Energy to convey our citizens’ concerns and
ask about route alternatives and opportunities for the Town to influence the project. While communication between the Town and
Dominion Energy opened up, more citizens as well as the Triangle Rails to
Trails Conservancy (TRTC) started to express concern.
Then, this week, the almost unbelievable happened: Dominion
Energy abandoned its pipeline route along the American Tobacco Trail. It notified NCDOT that it was no longer
interested in pursuing the ATT easements and turned its focus to another route within
roadway rights-of-way.
While we do not have the exact details of the new route, it
is unlikely that it could have the negative impact that using the easement along
the ATT would have had.
I credit this great outcome to Pam, the TRTC and other
citizens that spoke up. Without their expressions
of opposition, there very well may have been a different outcome. Thanks go out to our great Cary Town staff
for their work to convey our citizens’ concerns. Also, I thank Julie Wright and her colleagues
at Dominion Energy for being receptive to hearing our concerns and open to another
alternative.
Once Dominion Energy has its exact proposed routing in place
with NCDOT, it will hold a public meeting to ensure citizens are aware of the new
plan. I encourage citizens to attend!
2.
Cary EMS
Emails poured into Council members’ email boxes about the absorption
of Cary EMS into Wake EMS. Dozens of
people asked the Cary Town Council to help them in stopping this merger. Although this was another decision outside of
our realm of responsibility, the citizens sought as many avenues as possible to
influence the possible merger. Council Member Don Frantz led the way by
reaching out to Wake County Commissioners.
Several other Council members followed up with additional conversations
with Wake County Commissioners. While
the merger was supposed to be included in the budget currently being considered
for the coming fiscal year, the County Commissioners and their staff listened
to citizens’ and our concerns and removed it from the current budget proposal.
Wake County will instead study the matter separate from the
budget. This decision certainly resulted
from the outpouring of concern from citizens.
And, it is a great win for Cary.
As Wake County takes up this issue in the future, I hope citizens will
continue to provide input and insights to the County to help them understand
the full implications of their decision.
Thanks to the citizens who rallied around this issue and took
the time to share their concerns with us.
A big thanks to the County Commissioners for hearing our concerns and responding
by postponing the decision.
Citizen input matters.
It spurs closer examination of issues.
It is a catalyst for deeper conversations. Citizens influence our decision
making….so keep it up.